5 Myths About Working Out

Everybody wants to be healthy and have a body one can be proud of; and physical exercise seems like a natural way of achieving it. However, it is astonishing how many misconceptions, superstitions and outright lies there are in the fitness community. Some of them may render your efforts useless and some can hurt you. Here are 5 workout myths you should be aware of.

1. Training Regimen Doesn’t Matter

Who needs trainers? I can always surf the Internet, pick up a dozen exercises and work out happily on my own, thank you very much.

It is, however, not a very productive approach.

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Although in most cases you won’t do yourself much harm by compiling your own training schedule, chances are you will waste more time with less results. Sometimes it may be outright dangerous – an exercise may be detrimental to your health if you have certain conditions. All in all, looking for help of a professional trainer is a good idea.

2. Steroids Are Extremely Harmful

Many people treat anabolic steroids as some kind of hellish concoction that makes your muscles grow like mushrooms while simultaneously ruining your health. Both notions are equally untrue.

On the one hand, steroids won’t do much for your muscles unless accompanied by a carefully planned intensive training schedule. On the other hand, of course they can ruin your health – just like about any other medication, supplement or substance if used without proper knowledge and procedure. Steroids are just a tool – an incredibly useful tool in skilled hands. And just like with any other tool, you can harm yourself if you don’t know how to wield it.

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This is exactly why you should only use legal steroids and supplements – in this case you can hope for proper guidance and support to make sure you get all the results without suffering any ill effects.

3. No Pain, No Gain

Despite being extremely popular, this phrase is rarely used by those who really know their business. Experts usually have a diametrically different opinion: if you feel pain when exercising, you are doing something wrong. It may be the sign that you can hurt yourself or already have an injury. It doesn’t mean that you are ‘really’ exercising – it means that you should see your doctor.

On the other hand, muscle soreness, usually on the day after the exercise, is quite normal, especially if you have just started a new, more intensive workout regimen. So be reasonable, follow some simple guidelines and you will be alright.

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4. The Choice of Sport Doesn’t Matter

Unless you are really into some particular kind of sport, the choice of activity usually happens kind of on its own, which isn’t a correct approach. Each person is different, and is capable of different results in different sports. The choice should be based on how much time you have, at what time of year you can dedicate more resources to the activity and so on.

5. Gym Is Just a Gym

In fact, it is something much greater – at least for regulars. Gyms are places with their own culture, etiquette, acceptable and unacceptable behavior patterns. It is not so much a place where you go to work out – it is a social occasion that happens to coincide with working out. So, if you want to maintain good relationships both with other visitors and gym’s administration, you should learn what to do and what not to do prior to signing up.

Of course, these are not the only myths and misconceptions accompanying sport and working out. Some are more obvious than others, some are less – but you will do yourself a world of good if you learn to single them out and steer clear of them.

5 Exercises To Improve Intimacy and Create a Better Relationship

Making love can be simultaneously the most pleasurable and the most stressful experience that we share with another human being. It is a natural conclusion of the ritual of intimacy we engage in with a person we find attractive on both a physical and psychological level. Yet, we are far removed from our animalistic roots, and that which was once a matter of instinct has become somewhat complex. This is a good thing; we have grown as a society, and there are many factors involved when it comes to the relationship between sexual partners. However, we have also lost a great deal of the physical prowess our primitive ancestors had.

They engaged in a huge amount of physical activities daily — activities that ensured their cardiovascular system and muscles were in great shape, which allowed them to have healthy libidos, strong erections, and the muscular strength, limberness and endurance to maintain different positions for a long time without getting exhausted. Luckily, we can regain some of these animalistic traits with the right kind of training. Here are some essential exercises that will help improve your relationship, but making you more confident in intimate settings, which means that you’ll have more satisfying intercourse.

1. Cardio for Stamina

If you’re out of shape, the first thing you’ll notice during intercourse is that you start to breathe heavily, sweat profusely and tire easily. This means you’ll have to shift your posture frequently and limit yourself to a few positions you feel comfortable with or significantly slow down the pace. A high BMI has also been linked to potential problems with erectile dysfunction. Cardiovascular exercises like running, jumping rope, swimming and cycling will build up your aerobic stamina and enable you to perform longer before becoming fatigued, thus having better intercourse. They’ll also help manage your weight, possibly helping performance.

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Running – 10-20 minutes a day (1-3 miles a day is more than enough)

Jumping rope – 5-20 minutes a day

Swimming – 30 minutes a day

Cycling – 30 minutes a day

The time in minutes denotes time spent actively performing the exercise, and you need to factor in a bit more time for warming up before and cooling down after the exercises.

These exercises can be performed every day or every other day, and the goal is to work on both endurance and speed. Don’t just go at a snail’s pace; constantly try to improve your time or add some mileage.

2. Strength-Training for Your Lower Body and Core

The next thing you’ll need to focus on is improving both the strength and muscular endurance of the hip flexors, abdominals and spinal erectors. These are the muscles engaged in thrusting and circular motions, and they also stabilize your body in a number of different positions. The legs also play an important role, particularly in standing and kneeling positions. Here are a few exercises that will help you strengthen up this area:

Heavy barbell squats – set up at a power rack at the gym and make sure you use proper form and weights that you can lift 3-8 times. Do this exercise before anything else in the gym for 4-5 sets to get big and powerful legs, as well as tighten up the muscles of the core. This is useful for both men and women, particularly if you enjoy the woman-on-top positions and standing positions. You can do hack squats on the machine if your gym lacks a power rack, but you won’t get the core-strengthening benefits

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Zercher squats – this type of squat is a perfect way for guys to strengthen their body for standing positions where the woman is lifted off the ground. Build up a foundation of strength first, and then use lighter weights and go for 10-12 repetitions to focus on muscle endurance.

Glute bridge – this exercise is great for working the glutes and hip thrusters, and should be done for ultra-high reps —up to 100 — to increase muscle endurance. Once you become stronger in this movement, you can upgrade to the barbell glute bridge and keep the reps high — around 10 to 15.

Hyperextensions – excellent for strengthening the spinal erectors, this exercise (or a variation of it) may be done in most gyms and even at home. Do 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 12 repetitions at the end of your workout.

Ab wheel rollout – this is a great exercise for strengthening the abs, and requires only a piece of inexpensive equipment. It will help you stay stable and hold positions longer without getting tired during intercourse. Do three sets of this workout for as many repetitions as you can.

Cross body crunch – this exercise improves your ability to perform explosive twisting motions, particularly good for improving your stamina in the spoon position where you’e lying on your side. Do 2 to 3 sets of this exercise at the end of your workout.

Incorporate these exercises into your routine 2 to 3 times a week.

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3. Upper-Body Strength Training

Upper-body strength plays an important role in many popular sex positions where the arms are used to provide a stable base or hold onto the partner. These including missionary, doggy style, the stand and carry (with the woman holding onto the man’s neck) and others. Use these simple exercises to improve upper body strength and endurance:

Plank – while bench pressing is great for building a big chest, you will find yourself in need of static strength, muscle endurance and a strong core. This exercise is a great way to increase the amount of time you are able to hold positions that require you to support yourself with your arms. For added difficulty, straighten out your arms like at the top of a pushup and hold as long as you can.

Close pushups – a pushup variation that focuses on triceps, which are the first to give out during a prolonged missionary or similar position. Go for very high reps, 20 t0 50, to work on muscle endurance.

Chin-ups – A great upper back and biceps builder, this exercise will also target the core if you try to be as straight as possible when lifting yourself up. You can jump to help make things easier, or just hold as long as you can if you aren’t strong enough to perform a single chin up. Do 3 to 4 sets for as many reps as you can.

These exercises, done about three times a week, will help you develop a strong upper body that can keep going and hold you up for extended periods of time.

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4. Pelvic-Floor Exercises

You don’t have to perform these at the gym, although you could do them after your workout without anyone even noticing. The idea behind Kegel exercises is to improve blood flow to the sex organs and strengthen the muscles of the pelvic floor in both men and women. By locating these muscles and tightening and relaxing them for intervals of 5 seconds for 10 to 15 repetitions at a time, several times a day, you can improve pleasure and performance during sex. Women can tighten their vaginal walls for increased pleasure to both them and their partner, while men can delay ejaculation by tightening these muscles.

5. Flexibility Moves for Legs and Hips

If you want to avoid getting cramps — or even worse, pulling a muscle during intercourse — you should do a few simple stretches every day. The more limber you are, the more comfortable you’ll be with more exotic poses. Here are a few simple stretches to improve hip and leg flexibility:

Take a few minutes to warm up with some light running or jumping jacks before stretching, and spend some 10 minutes on these stretches. You can do them in the morning and at night, or shortly before intercourse.

With just a few hours a week devoted to exercise, you can improve your relationship significantly. If you focus on these exercises, over time, you just might become dynamite in bed.